Apparatus for manufacturing gas



(No Model.) 3 sheets-sheet 1.,

E. R. ELLSWORTH.

APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING GAS. No 522,687. Patented July 10, 1894.

INVENTOR:

WITNESSES: 52104)? A r, v ,W%W@ J (No Model.) 3 Sheets+-Sheet 2.

E. R. ELLSWORTH.

APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING GAS.

No. 522,687. Patented July 10, 1894.

A INVENTOR: WITNESSES:

By I I .dttorn.

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

E. R. ELLSWORTH.

(No Model.)

I Ill APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING GAS Patented Jul M IQ P INVENTORIHNESSES:

Zk W I runs an. Pam's-1110.. wAsnmcYon l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWIN R. ELLSWORTH, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

IAPPARA'I 'US FOR MANUFAOTUR ING GAS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 522,687, dated July 10,1894.

Application filed October 31, l 893.

To (ZZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWIN Rurnvnn ELLs- .WORTH,acitizen of the UnitedStates, residing in Brooklyn, Kings county, New York, have inventedcertain Improvements in A1) paratus for Manufacturing Gas, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to the manufacture of heating and illuminating gasand particularly. to that type of manufacture wherein steam isdecomposed with the aid of incandescent fuel andthe gas, commonly calledwater gas, afterward fixed by heat. It the gas is to be used as anilluminant, it is carbureted by admixture with some more or lessvolatile hydrocarbon before fixing or simultaneously therewith.

The object of the invention is in the main,

to effect an important economy in the cost of manufacture of gas.

The invention will be fully described hereinafter and its novel featurescarefully defined in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated an apparatus adapted foruse in carrying out my improved process of making gas.

In the drawingsFigure Us a side elevation of the apparatus, and Fig. 2is a vertical longitudinal mid-section of the same. Fig. 2 is ahorizontal section of the charging inlet of the generator, showing thearrangement of the steam inlet. Figs. 3, 4., 5 and 6 are horizontalsections of the superheater taken in the planes indicated, respectively,by the lines 3,3; 4.,- 4; 5, 5, and 6, 6, in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is avertical transverse section of the superheater taken in the planeindicated by the line 7, 7, in Fig. 5. Figs. Sand 9 are horizontalsections of the generator taken in the planes indicated respectively bythe lines 8, 8, and 9, 9, in Fig. 2.

The apparatus I comprises two main features, a generator, A, and asuper-heater, B. These are connected by a gas conduit, 0, as will behereinafter explained.

The generator, as herein shown, is constructed of firebrick, or othersuitable refractory material, and is provided with an exterior casing orjacket of sheet metal. It will be circular in plan by preference, butthis circular form is not essential. Within the generator is formed agenerating or de- Serial No. 489,638. I on. model.)

composing chamber, a, which is contracted, or conical, at its lower partwhere it opens into a combustion chamber, a. This combustion chamberextends laterally beyond the open, lower end of the decomposing chamber,as seen in Fig. 2, being of greater diameter, and it may, in practice,be about two feet in depth. A grate, ai, forms the bottom of thecombustion chamber and below this grate is the ash pit, a

In the wall of the ash pit is an air-inlet, a", to admit air from ablower, not shown.

a is the door of the ash pit, adapted to be tightly closed, and a, inFig. l, are clinker doors.

In the wall about the decomposing chamber a, is a lower annular fiue, a,and oblique flues, a lead to this flue from the outer margin of the roofof the combustion chamber 0.. Vertical flues, a lead from the annularflue a, up to another upper annular flue, a", which surrounds the upperpart of the chamber a. This upper annular flue a connects with theconduit 0, as seen in Fig. 8, and as will be hereinafter explained indetail.

In the top of the generator is the cylindricalcharging inlet, a forsupplying fuel to the decomposing and combustion chambers. This inlet,which projects above the top-plate of the generator, has a cover adaptedto be tightly closed; a steam pipe, a, enters this inlet at its side andtangentially thereto as indicated in Fig. 2. Capped holes,tt forinserting a poker, are arranged in the top of the generator, as shown inFig. 2.

Before describing further the construction of the generator A, I willdescribe the construction of the super-heater B, wherein the gas iscarbureted and fixed. This superheater is built of fire brick, or likerefratory material, inclosed in a jacket of sheet metal. As here shownit is oblong in plantsee Figs. 3 to 6), having within it a double set ofchambers as will be explained. In its base is a receiving chamber, 1),which receives the gas from the generator by way of the conduit 0. Overthe chamber 1), is a skeleton arch, b which forms a bottom for two likefixing chambers, b and I), filled or partly filled with what is calledchecker-work; that .is bricks or blocks of some refractory material laidup loosely. Above the respective fixing chambers are the vaporizingchambers, b and 12 These are alike and each is in the form of aninverted frustum of a cone with a cylindrical neck which opens into thecrown of the fixing chamber below. In the tops of the respectivevaporizing chambers are gas, outlets, b and I). These are provided eachwith a tightly closing cover at its top which, when removed, permits theescape of products of combustion during the blowing up operation, andeach is also provided with alateral outlet, 5 which leads the gasgenerated to an ordinary hydraulic seal, b ,seen in Fig.1. From theseals the gas flows to the holder by way of the outlets, b and b of theseals. These outlets have cut off valves of the usual kind operated by alever, b. The injecting nozzles, 11 and b, for vaporizing the liquidhydrocarbon, enter the respective chambers b and b tangentially, as seenin Fig. 3, so as to impart a gyratory motion to the vapors in thechambers and thus effect a more thorough atomization of the liquid.

In the upper part of the wall of the superheater A, is an annular flue,Z9 and in the side walls of the same are upright flues, b, which open inthe chamber b, at their lower ends (see Figs. 2 and 6) and into the flue19 at their upper ends. There are. two other flues, b, which are seen inFigs. 4:, 5 and 7, which extend from the annular flue I), down to theskeleton arch h or thereabout, and connect thereat with air-inlet pipes,19 (see Figs. 1 and 7.)

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: A fire is built on thegrate in the generator A, and the covers on the gas outlets b and b, arethrown open. The fire is ignited and a moderate blast turned on at theinlet 0. in the ash-box. Coal is fed into the generator at the charginginlet a in suitable quantity until the generating and decomposingchambers are filled say to about the extent indicated in Fig. 2. Theproducts of combustion generator chambers and pass to the conduit 0, bythe outlet 0. seen in Fig. 8, the valve or damper a fiseen in thisfigure being then turned to the position indicated in dottedlinestherein, so as to cut off the upward flow of the gases from the chambera, by way of the temperature to a red heat.

temperatureis attained in the superheater B, the blowing up process isfinished. The air blast is shut off from the inlet as, under the grateof the generator; and at the inlets Z9 the valve a is turned to theposition seen in full lines in Fig. 8; the covers of the outlets -b andI), of the superheater B, are closed, and

rise directly through the massof fuel in the.

the lever 17*, so shifted as to close the valve controlling the vgasoutlet 5 if this has not before been attended to. Steam is admitted tothe generator A, at the pipe at, and passes down through the mass ofincandescent fuel in the chamber a, where it is decomposed and combineswith the carbon of the fuel to form crude water gas, which is a mixtureof carbon monoxide and hydrogen. This gas enters the combustion chambera, but immediately turns upward in the open spaces (see Fig. 2) abovethe fuel therein and enters the flu es a thence it flows into theannular flue a, thence upward through the flues a into the annular flueof, and thence (see Fig. 8) into the conduit O. From the conduit 0, itflows into the chamber 1), of the superheater B. As soon as the processof making a run as it is called, has begun as above described, steam andoil are admitted to the atomizer b, and the atomized hydrocarbondescends into the chamber I), and through the checker work therein,where it becomes heated to the same extent as the gas entering thechamber 1), below. The mingled hydrocarbon and gas now pass upwardthrough the checker work in chamber b where they are thoroughly combinedand fixed. From this chamber the fixed gas rises through the chamber 6,and passes 01f through the outlet 19 to theseal, and thence by way ofoutlet 19 to the holder for storage. This run is continued until thesuperheater is cooled down to .a temperature too low to do the workeffectively, when the apparatus is this second heating, the valves atthe gas outlets of the superheater are shifted so as to close the outletb and open the outlet b and when the water gas enters the chamber 1),the atomizer 19 is set to work and the gas is fixed in passing upthrough chamber I), to the outlet 12 This reversal of the opera: tion inthe superheater at each alternate run equalizes the heat in thesuperheater and this is very importantin the continuous daily operationof the apparatus.

In the operation of blowing up, the air entering at the lateral inletsI), may, on its passage down the flues 19 be admitted to the chambers band b, wholly or in part, at apertures, I)", seen in Fig. 2, andtheseapertures ,-or the upper ones-may have valves, 19 to control the influxof the air.

It will be understood that the checker-work placed in chambers b and Uis composed of bricks or the like laid in loosely; in placing the brickscare will be taken not to obstruct the inflow of air at the inlets b".In Fig. 2 this checker-work is merely represented in a diagrammaticmanner.

As the atomized and vaporized hydrocar: bon descends through thecheckerwork in the fixing chamber it will break up and the vapor of highervolatility may pass into the adjoining fixing chamber through apertures,b, in the partition wall (see Figs. 2, 5 and 7) and at different levels.With this arranger- IOC I heated up again as at first described. After Iment only the vapor of lowest volatility will 1doesczend through theskeleton arch into chamer r In preparing for a run after the blowing up,the fire is sliced and fresh coal put on before the steam is admittedfor decomposition, and the steam admitted carries down with it throughthe mass of incandescent fuel below, the gaseous products driven offfrom the fresh coal. The steam is decomposed and the crude gases fromthe coal precipitate their heavier elements, the lighter combining withthe gases from the steam. Theselighter gases from the coalareilluminants, and their utilization efiects a very important saving inthe amount of liquid hydrocerbon necessary to provide thenon-illuminating water gas with illuminants.

Among the advantages arising from my method of operating and from thespecial apparatus employed, are the following:

I amable to employ the cheapest quality of coal such as the waste fromthe mines with just enough coke to hold it up loosely. Or lumpanthracite coal may be used in lieu of coke. Beforethe fresh charge ofcoal is admitted, the fuel in the generator will be incandescent nearlyto the top.

All of the gaseous products of the fuel are utilized only clinker andash falling into the ash-box.

The steam is introduced into the charging inlet of the generatortangentially so that it has a gyratorymovement. This causes the steam toabstract the heat from the coal inlet tube, which is of metal andcylindrical, and

By passing the air from the inlets Z2 upward through flues inthe hotwalls of the superheater and thence down through another set of fiues inthe same, the air is heated by what would otherwise be Waste heat andwhen it reaches the chamber 12, the air is at the proper temperature tomix with the gases from the generator and promote perfect com bustion inthe superheater.

Another important feature is the mode of aromizing the liquidhydrocarbon in the vaporizing chambers whereby I avoid precipitating thesame in liquid form into the chamber below. The vaporizing chambersbeing circular in plan and the jet being admitted tangentially, theatomized liquidhas a gymtory motion and descends in the. funnel shapedchamber, meeting with a higher temperature as it descends, until itpasses through the contracted neck of the chamber into the fixingchamber. This prevents the deposition of free carbon such as would occurif the liquid were discharged directly onto a highly heated surface.

I am well aware that it is not new to employ two fixing chambersfurnished with checker work, but I am not aware of such having beenconstructed and operated as herein described.

Having thus described my invention, I claim In a gas apparatus, agenerator havinga decomposing chamber a, a combustion chamber a,arranged below the chamber a, an ash-box and grate, an inlet for anair-blast below the grate, an annular flue a, near the upper part, fluesleading from the top of the combustion chamber to said line a, a conduitfor leading off gases from the upper part of the generator and connectedboth with the chamber a, and the flue a avalve e adapted to control theflow of gases from the generator to the conduit, and a charging inlet inthe top of the generator.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

E. R. ELLSWORTI-I. Witnesses:

DANIEL ROTHS'IEIN, HENRY J. MOORE.

